The New York Giants had been mired in mediocrity and out of
the postseason for 17 consecutive years as they entered the 1981 NFL season.
After winning two of their first three games in ’81, they lost two straight and
were 2-3 as they prepared to take on the St. Louis Cardinals on October 11. But
there was cause for optimism. The defense was strong, especially at linebacker
where veterans Brad Van Pelt, Harry Carson, and Brian Kelley had been joined by
first-round draft pick Lawrence Taylor, who was having an immediate impact.
Third-year QB Phil Simms was still a promising work in progress. But a new
factor was being introduced for the game against the Cardinals in the person of
FB Rob Carpenter, who had just been received in a trade with the Houston Oilers
with the hopes of improving the running game.
The fifth-year veteran Carpenter had labored in the shadow
of Houston ’s
great RB Earl Campbell and, other than his rookie season in the pre-Campbell
year of 1977 when he ran the ball 144 times for 652 yards, he had not carried
more than 97 times in any one campaign. His rushing total in 57 games for the
Oilers was 1788 yards while averaging 4.1 yards per carry, although he had
caught 43 passes in 1980. In the first four contests of the ’81 season before
being traded, Carpenter carried the ball just 18 times for 74 yards.
The visiting Cardinals, coached by Jim Hanifan, also came
into the game at 2-3 after having beaten the Cowboys the previous week. RB
Ottis Anderson was a well-established ground gainer in his third year and while
37-year-old veteran Jim Hart was still the starting quarterback, the promising
Neil Lomax from Portland
State had been drafted in
the second round and was waiting in the wings. But while the offense had
talent, the defense was a chronic source of problems.
There were 67,128 fans at Giants Stadium and they witnessed
a scoreless first quarter before a New
York fumble set up a 14-yard touchdown pass from Hart
to TE Doug Marsh seven seconds into the second quarter.
The Giants responded with a 56-yard drive that ended with
Joe Danelo kicking a 41-yard field goal to cut the St. Louis lead to 7-3. New York put together another scoring drive
despite Simms being sacked twice along the way. He threw to WR Johnny Perkins
for a five-yard TD to put the Giants in front.
An interception of a Hart pass by Brian Kelley set up another
score before the half. Kelley returned the pickoff 16 yards to the St. Louis 33 and Simms
again threw to Perkins for a touchdown, this time from seven yards out, with 31
seconds remaining in the second quarter. The Giants went into halftime with a
17-7 lead. Simms had thrown for 121 yards in the first half but was also sacked
four times, at a cost of 22 yards.
The Giants scored again to start the third quarter as Danelo
booted a 45-yard field goal to make it 20-7. New York
then took control when Marsh fumbled after catching a pass from Hart and FS
Beasley Reece recovered for the Giants at the New York 45. The Giants capitalized when
Simms tossed a 22-yard touchdown pass to WR Earnest Gray and it was 27-7
heading into the final period.
The Cardinals narrowed the lead in the fourth quarter on a
series highlighted by a Hart completion to WR Pat Tilley that picked up 34 yards.
RB Theotis Brown capped the drive by running for a three-yard TD. But Carpenter
crowned his debut with a 21-yard touchdown run that was set up in turn by a
24-yard carry by Simms. The Giants won handily by a score of 34-14.
Rob Carpenter made an immediate impact with his new team by
rushing for 103 yards on 14 carries that included a touchdown. Phil Simms (pictured below) completed 19 of 33 passes for 208 yards with three TDs and had none
intercepted. Johnny Perkins led the receivers with 5 catches for 55 yards and
two touchdowns.
For the Cardinals, Jim Hart, who was replaced late in the
fourth quarter by the rookie Lomax, was successful on 17 of 26 throws for 195
yards with a TD and an interception. Ottis Anderson ran for 71 yards on 17
attempts and also caught a team-leading 5 passes for 47 yards. Doug Marsh
gained 52 yards on his four pass receptions that also included a touchdown.
“It was the biggest game of the year for us,” summed up Phil
Simms.
“It was a great victory, the greatest since I’ve been here,”
echoed Head Coach Ray Perkins of the Giants.
“I was running behind a pretty good offensive line,” said
Rob Carpenter. “It was the first time in two years that a line has given me the
time to make a cut behind the line of scrimmage.”
With Carpenter adding a new dimension to the offense, the
Giants went on to a 9-7 record to finish third in the NFC East and qualify for
a Wild Card spot in the playoffs, thus making their first postseason appearance
since 1963. They defeated the division-rival Eagles in the Wild Card round
before succumbing to the 49ers in the Divisional playoff game. The Cardinals,
with Lomax finishing out the year in place of Hart, ended up fifth in the
division at 7-9.
Rob Carpenter had his best year, rushing the ball 190 times
for 748 yards in his ten games with the Giants and catching 24 passes for 201
more yards (overall, adding in his statistics with Houston, he gained 822 yards
on 202 carries). He went over a hundred yards rushing in four games and added
161 yards on 33 carries in the Wild Card win over Philadelphia .
Phil Simms also played well until a shoulder injury ended
his season prematurely in the tenth game. He passed for 2031 yards with 11
touchdowns and 9 interceptions, but it was Scott Brunner behind center for the
4-1 run at the end of the regular season and the playoff contests.
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